New Short Fiction: ‘Evil in My Bag’
In Aya Chalabee’s “Evil in My Bag,” a girl comes of age while Iraq is under US occupation and has to contend with a changing landscape, a strange soldier, and a gigantic crow.
Country Focus
From Mohamed N.M. Ali’s ‘The Call of Stillness’
These two poems, from Mohamed N.M. Ali latest collection, “نداء السكون” (The Call of Stillness), search for a self and selfhood “in the evening of oblivion.”
New Poetry in Translation: Anas al-Ghouri’s ‘Dream-Drenched Theft’
Here, Syrian poet Anas al-Ghouri reflects back on “wish-filled pockets” and the shoes that would reclaim childhood from want.
Remembering Iraqi Novelist Mahmoud Saeed
FEBRUARY 4, 2025 — Prolific Iraqi novelist Mahmoud Saeed, who moved to Chicago in 1999 but continued to write about Iraq throughout his life, often boldly, died last week after […]
Rawaa Sonbol on Being a Writer in Syria Today
Rawaa Sonbol is a Syrian author of short fiction, theater, and children’s literature. She has published three short story collections: The Tongue Hunter (2017), which received the Sharjah Award for […]
‘Grief, a Wolf,’: New Poetry by Olivia Elias
Grief, a Wolf, December 31, 2024, by Olivia Elias, translated from French by Jérémy Victor Robert * in these barbaric times….I live like a sick person forced to save […]
Alex Elinson on Translating the ‘Bold, Punchy, Gutsy’ Night Bird
On the heels of our conversation with Algerian novelist Amara Lakhous, translator Alex Elinson talks about how he wanted to translate Lakhous’s طير الليل even before he knew it existed, how […]
Amara Lakhous on Mediterranean Noir
In this wide-ranging conversation, acclaimed and award-winning Algerian novelist Amara Lakhous talks about writing in multiple languages, the importance of detective novels to democracy, Mediterranean noir, and more. Thank you […]
New Short Fiction: ‘You Know Nothing of Love, Dumbass’
You Know Nothing of Love, Dumbass By Kareem Mohsen Translated by Mandy McClure We sat side by side in the restaurant. I made sure our knees were touching to create […]